Her Heart Loves His
by snowzone5
Summary: AU. Mike has an idea for a novel. He eventually falls in love with the main character. And then an almost impossible science experiment goes horribly wrong and changes Mike and his new friends lives forever.
1. Chapter 1 - Ideas

"Morning Max," Mike called as he headed to the coffee pot, "Thanks for making coffee."

"I do every morning Wheeler, you're just not up early enough to drink it."

Mike chuckled at her and grabbed himself a mug, he had an idea for a novel. A series of novels and was excited to get started.

"Why are you up this early Mike? Something wrong."

"Got a story idea. I think I can bang out a few chapters today."

"Oh? Hit me with it, I'll tell you if it's stupid or not."

Mike knew that was coming, he bounced a lot of ideas off his roommate and she always had common sense suggestions. He was sure he could write without her it would just take longer and several drafts later before he'd be done. Something he thought his publisher would whine about. But he was a relatively famous writer, so he was sure he could get away with it.

For her part, Max was grateful that Mike let her stay at his place, rent free no less. Mike wasn't her best friend, but he was a good friend nonetheless. She didn't have a best friend. Her job at the lab kept made any social life completely non-existent.

She was reading the latest science news on her laptop at the breakfast nook in the loft. "I know you aren't the least bit interested in this but they are going to fire up the LHC in a few weeks."

"I might be semi-excited if I even knew what that was, Max." Mike opened his own laptop opposite her in the nook.

"I thought you were supposed to be science geek?"

"I wrote about science that interested me. I'm guessing seeing as you're a particle physicist that's interesting news to you."

Max rolled her eyes. "Large Hadron Collider. Think of Hadrons as in between Boson's and Fermions."

Mike facepalmed. "Of course, how could I forget!"

Max rolled her eyes, "Ok you've obviously found the Moron particle. So the TL;DR version, it's theorized that Boson's and Fermions overlap exactly half of the Hadrons on each side. We've pretty much proven the Fermion side, that's electrons, protons, and neutrons to you, but we really only theorized the Boson side. LHC is trying to find the Higgs particle. Scientists call it the Higgs-Boson particle. The stupid press calls it the God Particle."

"Related to the Big Bang?"

Max rolled her eyes. "No, more like to reality as we know it. You'll need about seven more years of university for me to explain the rest to you dumbass. By the way, have I mentioned how grateful I am for the free rent?" She smiled at him.

"They give you a big pipe for an internet connection, so I'm ok with your freeloading." Mike smiled back at her.

"Screw you Wheeler, I can throttle your connection anytime I want." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Yeah yeah… so do you want to hear my idea or not?"

"Knock yourself out. I'm listening."

"Ok, I haven't worked out all the details yet, but the basics are that a young boy has been kept in a lab for eleven or twelve years, he has an ability or two and they are running experiments on him to turn him into a some kind of super weapon against the Russians. He escapes and is found by a group of girls looking for their missing friend."

Max just looked at him, "Who's your target audience?"

Mike shrugged, "I don't know, boys around twelve or thirteen?"

"Have you looked at that kind of young adult stories in movies, Tv and on the bookshelf?"

"Not really, why?"

"For crying out loud Wheeler, you're a writer, do some research. Strong female characters are in. You will get more boys reading it if it's a female character, and you will get actual girls to read it if she develops a romantic interest in the boy that finds her."

Mike sat back. Shit. She's right. How did I miss that?

Max saw his look and said, "It's still your idea Mike, you just change genders around and it works better. I'm speaking strictly as a girl. Just remember what it was like when you were twelve or thirteen and you saw a pretty girl you liked."

"I am, but she wanted nothing to do with me, but ended up being my redheaded roommate anyway. You know I didn't have any girlfriend's Max you don't need to rub it in."

"Sorry Mike. I know that's a sore spot for you. So write the main character as lonely who finds this girl, she's sweet and innocent. Scared and just as lonely. Doesn't even know what a friend is let alone a boyfriend."

"Shit. I wish I'd thought of that."

"You would have gotten there. A lot of your novels feature that very theme, maybe you don't see it but I do… and so do all of your readers."

XXXXX

"Ok, I sent you the draft of the first chapter in email. Give it a read and give me your honest opinion. Remember Max Friends Don't Lie. If something really blows let me know. Feel free to ask any questions, if you have questions, other readers are likely to also."

Max opened up the document and started reading.

"1983?"

"No cell phones. I'm not having the characters rely on cell phones and google searches. They have to use walkie-talkie or something. And the library, where they'll need to be able to read."

Max laughed, "Good idea." She continued reading. Suddenly she felt a little sick, but recovered quickly

A few minutes later, "Did you just introduce a monster?"

"Yeah," Mike swallowed, he was feeling a little lightheaded. "It will figure in the story later. You don't look good Max, you feeling ok?"

Max put her hand to her stomach, "Felt a little nauseated, not from the story," she gave him a faltering smile. "And no, mister, not my time of the month.

He held up his hands, "TMI, Max. Keep it to a minimum."

"I like how you use this Will character as a vehicle for the mother's and party's actions. He's not in the forefront but the events surround his going missing."

"I needed, something. I don't even like the character so he's not going have a lot of dialog. And he's going to be bit whiny. I'll find some use for him. It's mainly about the friendship of the other characters and the girl."

"I like how they are going to have to avoid this Brenner guy, but eventually have to deal with the monster. This is a good chapter Mike."

A little while later Max said, "Oh! She's telekinetic, reliving your X-Men days Mike?"

He smiled at her.

"Poor Benny. He was the first person to show her kindness. I love how you describe her smile and her eyes. Why did you have her head shaved?"

"I want to generate sympathy. For girls I know that's a big thing to have their hair cut like that."

"I have nightmares about that. That's a good touch. Boys will feel sorry for her too."

"You haven't given her a name yet?"

"Still thinking about that. I think it's going to be a number. Not thirteen though, too cliché. I'll make it a prime number or something."

Mike felt a lurching in his stomach. He was going to be sick.

"Eleven." He said to Max and ran to the bathroom.


	2. Chapter 2 - Parallels and Problems

Mike looked up over his laptop, "Hey Max, it's five-thirty, what are you doing up this early."

She was scratching underneath her breasts, "Scratching my boobs, Mike."

"Ugh, yeah… um why?

"Cause their itchy Mike." She smirked.

"Ok, why in front of me?"

"I like to think we're good enough friends that I can scratch anything in front of you."

"Well, that's where you'd be wrong. Not a turn on at all."

"Wasn't meant to be a turn on Mike, it was meant to gross you out."

"It's working. Seriously what are you doing up this early?"

"I always get up this early. It's you who leads a life of leisure. Getting up whenever. You haven't moved all night have you?"

"I'm on a roll. I'm going back and forth between developing Mike and El's relationship in the first few chapters, and then their longing for each other in the second book, and also writing them in their late twenties."

Max shook her head. "You named one of the main characters after you?"

"Yeah, I originally intended to write in first person, so I just used my name but I needed to jump around a bit. Never bothered to change the name."

Max shrugged, "Mike's not a bad name, I have a good friend named Mike." She gave him a warm smile. "So who's ' El'?"

"I, I mean Mike, calls her El for short. I have a nice scene where he sees her tattoo, and that's where he asks her, and I think it's important, he asks her if they can call her El, short for Eleven."

"You are developing their relationship. I get it."

"It's more than just that, Max. I want to show that these two have a strong bond. Stronger than he has for the rest of the Party. They might even be soulmates. I want the audience to feel all of their fears, their happiness, their grief."

Max put a coffee in front of Mike and sat down across from him at the nook. She was giving him a big smile.

He said thanks, looked down at his laptop and then did a double take at her smile, "What?"

"Mike, I love you like a friend. But the girl who falls in love with you is going to know what true love is from a really nice guy. I'm kind of jealous already."

"That may be the nicest thing you've ever said to me. Go back to scratching your itchy boobs Max. You're weirding me out."

Max threw back her head and laughed. "Just so you know, the LHC guys are doing some sort of prep work, today, and we are going to piggy-back on the Fermion particles part of the experiment. All the lab people are working remote today, so I'll be at my desk working my part of the experiment."

"I'll stay out of your hair today, don't worry," he told her.

XXXXX

Max felt nauseated again, but she could take a bit of a break and get some ginger ale. She went out to the kitchen and saw Mike with his head in his hands. He seemed to be crying.

"Mike?" She was worried and went over and put a hand on his shoulder, "you ok?"

"I yelled at her, she was just trying to help and I yelled at her."

"I didn't hear anything, who did you yell at?"

"Eleven. I mean Mike yelled at El. He didn't mean it."

"I"m sure he didn't, Mike. Wait a minute. These are fictional characters Mike, aren't you getting emotional involved?"

Mike gave her a half smile, "I like to think I'm emotionally invested, Max. Eleven is such a sweet girl, to have that kind of childhood and then someone who cares for her like I, I mean Mike does…" His breath hitched and he burst out crying.

Max hugged him tight, "You need to take a break and get some sleep. Let me help you into bed. I'll get in with you if you want."

Mike shook his head, "It's ok Max."

"I actually meant that as a joke, but I would if you wanted me to. For comfort only Mike."

"I know Max, it's ok. You are good friend."

Max led him to his room and tucked him in.

XXXXX

Max noticed that Mike was very quiet the next few days. He was typing furiously on his keyboard.

One morning Mike sat back and said, "Ok, the older Mike and El story is mostly done. I need to noodle on the rest let, what I've got down percolate a little bit."

"You seem a little at peace?" Max said hoping.

"In their twenties, Mike and El are inseparable, they are solid. People will just look at them and see how much in love they are. It was fun to write that. Sure they'll have little misunderstandings, all couples do, but they are so in tune with each other they don't just finish each other's sentences, they say them at the exact same time."

"Soulmates?"

"In the true sense of the word, Max. Total and complete soulmates. It's very hard to describe, I just hope I got it down in prose so that it comes across to the reader."

"Ok what about the original few chapters. Are you finished those?"

Mike got quiet again and nodded, "Um, did you want to read them Max. Give me your honest opinion?"

"Sure Mike, I have a few hours to kill before the next part of the experiment."

Max read. She cried at the parts Mike had intended, she laughed at the other parts. The story was engrossing, the blossoming love between Mike and El was obvious to anybody. Even at that age, it was clear they belonged to each other, and not just a teen romance either, they would be together forever, always looking out for each other always comforting each other. Sneaking looks of love whenever nobody was looking. Maybe even when people were.

Max did something she wasn't expecting to do. At all. She read the words, "Goodbye Mike," and she felt pain, but that wasn't why started crying, she looked up at Mike who was already crying.

Her bottom lip trembled, "But she's not dead right? She's just trapped in the Upside Down or something? Please tell me she's not dead Mike."

"She's not, Max. I just can't write the next few chapters right now."

Max felt an inward sigh of relief. Eleven was ok. She looked up at Mike… his grief was palpable, he seemed almost inconsolable. That was when she understood.

"Oh my God Mike, you've fallen in love with her."

Mike nodded and put his head down in his arms and bawled. His keening was so heartbreaking that Max came over and hugged him from behind and cried with him on his shoulder.

"You can't Mike, she's a fictional character."

"I know Max, that's why it hurts."

"This won't make you feel any better, but if Eleven were here with you right now, she would love you with all her heart. You know she would."

Mike broke down and fell on the floor, curling into a fetal position. Max got down on the floor with him and spooned him from behind.

Max didn't know what to do, should she call someone? Who could she call? And how would she explain what he was going through? Writers did and said all kinds of crazy things, she didn't know if this was unique, but she suspected that it wasn't.

Even though they were both feeling sad, Max was proud of Mike, he'd written something that both guys and girls could laugh and cry at and not feel bad about. His story was special. About a relationship that everyone wished they had.

"I don't feel very good. Can you help me get into bed?"

Max helped and for the second time in her life tucked him into bed.

She thought she heard, Mike say something. She couldn't quite be sure if he actually did, but if he had, she knew what it was.

"I love you Eleven."


	3. Chapter 3 - Particles

..Particle wave collapse commencing

Max sat on the edge of Mike's bed. "You going to get up? It's almost noon."

"No."

"Mike…," she sighed. "If nothing else you promised to watch while I finished the last part of my experiment. You aren't going to break your promise to me are you."

"You know I wouldn't do that Max."

"You are depressed Mike, I'm not sure I can help. But… you can tell me which Eleven you love?"

"All of them."

"That's not what I meant, what if the twelve year old Eleven was standing here right now."

Mike was silent.

"I need an answer Mike, which one do you want to sleep beside?"

"The twelve year old Mike, loves the twelve year old Eleven. The thirteen year old Mike, loves the thirteen year Eleven. Same with the rest of the ages. I'm twenty-seven, I love the twenty-seven year old version of her. But if I was twelve, I would love all of them."

"Why did I think I'd get a simple answer." Max shook her head. " Here's a little reality for you. You can't have any of them They only exist in your mind, and in a story. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Tough love and all that. Build a bridge and get over it Mike. I'm here for you, but you have to get over it."

...sub particle 1 - collapsing

...Eleven crawled through the dirty tunnel. She was cold and she was cared. She was always cold and scared. She wished for warm clothes, a warm, safe place to sleep, and someone nice to be with. Someone who wouldn't make her do horrible things to animals. Someone who actually liked her.

She didn't want to be in the tunnel, but it was the only way she'd been able to escape the bath, the lab people… and Papa. She realized now, he had always been mean to her. He was only happy with her when she did what he wanted.

She saw a dim light up ahead and before she knew it her face was up against pressed against a metal grate. She couldn't crawl any farther. She saw the outside. She had only ever seen it in picture books. Even though the tunnel smelled bad, she could smell the fresh air beyond it.

And she wanted more. She used her ability to bend the grate back, she stepped out side, still cold and scared but now she was wet and dirty.

"There you are." A soft voice said from beside her. Even the voice sounded friendly, she jumped, and almost hurt him.

She was glad she didn't. He was smiling at her. A real smile. He held out clothes.

"Warm track pants, Warm sweater, wool socks, and some old runners of mine. Oh and this jacket. We'll get you some better clothes once we get to the cabin."

"I put these on?" She brought them up to her cheek. He was right, they were warm. And soft.

"I'll turn around so you can change. Don't worry, I won't look."

She changed very fast, and could already feel her body heating up the clothes.

The boy looked at her. He was cute. "Don't worry Eleven. I know who you are. I know what they did. I am going to keep you safe. Oh… one thing."

He turned to her, "You are really pretty," he leaned in and kissed her. She was surprised, her eyes widened and she tried to smile at him.

"Um, I really like you Eleven. I'll explain everything that I can. Come on." He grabbed her hand, it was so warm she almost cried.

She would follow this boy anywhere.

Anywhere.

...sub particle 2 - collapsing

…"MIke!"

El was frantic, she was in the Upside Down. Running through the school hallways. She was wearing the pink dress. Dirty and torn now, Mike's blue jacket was keeping her warm.

The Mind Flayer's vines were running through the walls and ceiling. She called Mike's name over and over, but he wouldn't be in the Upside Down, he was safe… well mostly safe for now.

She saw a light peaking through the wall and ran to it. She used her ability to tear through the slimey vines and escape the Upside down once again.

She crawled through the evil portal and landed on the floor, covered in the slime, hurting and hurting and crying.

She needed Mike.

She felt his arms pulling her into a tight hug. "I've got you," he said.

The love she felt for him was all encompassing, her heart almost burst when he said, "I love you Eleven. I'll always be here for you." El thought she would faint, she loved Mike so much.

"I love you too Mike."

-sub particle 3 - collapsing

"If you're out there, just, please, give me a sign."

"Mike," she said softly.

"Eleven?"

He couldn't see her but somehow he knew she was there! She didn't want to try and touch him because she knew it would disturb her vision in the Void.

But she couldn't help it, she loved him so much she needed to touch him.

"I will find a way to get to you Eleven. I promise. I will change the fabric of the universe to be with you again."

The tears streamed down her face, matching his.

She hung her heart on Mike's promise.

...sub particle Mike… collapsing...

...sub particle Eleven… collapsing…

XXXXX

"Mike, honey? Can you zip me up?" It sounded like it was coming from Mike's bedroom.

Mike and Max looked at each other wide eyed. Both frowning. Eleven seconds earlier they had both felt like puking, once the experiment indicated it had finished.

"Who's that?" Max mouthed, then whispered, "Did you bring a girl over without telling me? We had a deal about bringing people here… even though I live here for free." She gave Mike a half smile.

Mike held up his hand, indicating that she should stay where she was sitting at the breakfast nook.

Mike softly walked to his bedroom.

He saw her.

There was no mistaking who she was. Her long blondish chunked hair looked like it was caught in the zipper of her dress. She saw the gentle curve of her body as it flowed from her shoulders to her legs. He saw her bare back just above the zipper.

Mike's throat closed. He didn't know if he could talk. His vision blurred, and he managed to barely squeak out her name, "Eleven?"

She turned around and gave him smile that would have floored a hardened criminal. Her brown eyes turned his knees to mush. He was barely able to get to the edge of the bed to sit down.

Heavy tear drops flowed down his face.

She went from smiling to almost crying when she saw him, "Mike? Hun? What's wrong… Mike!"

She quickly sat close beside him and gave him crushing hug. "I'm here, baby. It's ok."

He barely managed to say, "I love you, Eleven."

"Oh Mike, honey, I love you too. It's ok. What's going on?" She was rocking him back and forth.

He put his arms around her and hugged her back. He cried on her shoulder. The kind of deep crying that only immense loss could bring on. She didn't know what was happening with him. All Eleven really knew was that she could feel the love coming from him. It was powerful. It was universal. It was heady, she wanted to drown in it.

At that moment Eleven knew that dying was nothing. Losing Mike's love was a far worse fate than anything she could think of. She thought this is what it's like to have a soulmate. Someone who you would love forever, someone who loved you forever.

Mike had physically taken care of her since she was twelve.

Mike had taken care of her heart forever. She had no doubt her in mind.

Her heart loved his.

"You ok in there?" A woman's voice said.


	4. Chapter 4 - Coherence

"You ok in there?" A woman's voice said.

El frowned at Mike. "Who's that?" Her voice had no suspicion in in it, just curiosity.

"Uh, El, there's um, someone I need you to meet, she'll be able to explain everything to you."

"Explain what?" She saw the pained looked in Mike's face. "Mike… you're scaring me a little."

She saw the worried look, the kind he showed her when he needed to tell her something but was unsure she would understand.

Their love was strong, she wasn't worried about that, but something was going on and she needed to know.

He took her hand and stood up from the bed. Mike led her out to the kitchen.

El was impatient, and even while holding his hand she walked slightly ahead of him. When she stopped in her tracks Mike did also, but still a little behind her.

"What's she doing here?"

Mike's eyes went wide looking at Max, he gave his head a little shake in an effort to avoid disaster.

"You've never forgiven me for that day have you?" Max said, giving Mike a quick glance to let him know she understood.

"Can I at least explain?" Max asked. Mike saw she was being a lot more humble than he thought her capable of, El was having none of it. The look she gave Max was withering.

"El, you didn't like me, you ignored me the entire time after you closed the gate. I was nothing to you, you thought I'd stolen the the boy you loved. So when you reached out to me I took advantage of that. I thought I'd found another friend that wasn't one of the guys. We could do girl things together, go shopping, all that stuff"

Max looked down, "It was one of the best days of my life. My opinion of guys wasn't very healthy at the time, even though Lucas and I were together, at least that day we were. But believe me El, I did not expect you to dump Mike. You were miserable after that. I mean, nobody really thought you'd actually dumped him, the rest of us figured you didn't know what it meant. Mike did though, and that hurt a lot, we all knew how much he loved you."

El's face softened. She went over to Max who was standing now, and gave her a hug. "I've seen you with Lucas, I knew you weren't interested in Mike… eventually I knew that anyway. I had a lot of fun that day, I got to be a girl, doing things boys just don't want to hang around and do. And you are right. At the time I thought dumping was just something you said when you were mad at a guy if he lied. I hope you didn't feel bad all these years?"

Max shrugged, and told a little white lie herself, "Off and on." She didn't look at El because she didn't know if El would be able to tell.

"So," El said as if the matter were done, "you aren't here to tell me why you are here. Max, Mike came into our bedroom, saw me and was crying like…" she took a quick look at Mike, "sorry Mike… like I'd been lost to him for years." She took his hand again.

Max gave off a big sigh. "I think you'll understand, because you dealt with the Upside Down, you remember how frustrating it was trying to tell the Party about it?

El nodded. "Ok," Max said, "This is a little like that."

Max did her best at explaining what a particle accelerator did, what collapsing particles and incoherence were, and how Mike's story and love for her fit in.

When she got to that part of the explanation, El hung her head.

"Are you telling me I'm not real?" She leaned over to Mike and gave him a slow, sensuous kiss. "Tell me that doesn't feel real, Mike."

She took his hand and put it over her heart. Mike could feel it pounding. "Because I feel real Mike, I've known you two since we were twelve or thirteen. You two only know me through Mike's story…"

"Max, how do I know another run of the accelerator won't change things back to the way they were?"

"Because Mike, the first time was a one in a billion trillion chance, your love for El, brought her into this reality."

Max looked at El, "and your love for Mike… it's going to keep you here."

"Max, I can't lose her, not now."

"You won't lose her Mike," Max said.

"I promise," El said, "if my love is what is keeping me here, then there is zero chance. I'm not a scientist but I was experimented on by one." She gave a half smile in an attempt to be humorous.

"Yeah, about that." Max said, "In this reality, you don't have any abilities."

"I lost them for awhile, but I have them back." El said.

Max looked at Mike, "Help me out here Mike."

El frowned. She looked at Max's laptop. The lid closed. Max and Mike looked at each other wide-eyed.

"Holy shit." Max said.

"You guys know my ability came back. I don't know why you are surprised." She said looking back and forth between them.

"Uh." Mike said.

"I'm in your's," El said.

"How do you know?" Max said.

"I saw the spare bedroom, you are Mike's roommate. That's ok, but I'm sure Lucas would rather you sleep in his bed."

Max shook her head. "Lucas is not here, I never heard of him before reading Mike's story."

"Max," El said, sounding a little condescending, "you guys live right across the hallway."

Max looked up at Mike at the exact same time there was a knock on the door.

"That will be Lucas, Dustin, and Suzie. I can tell by the way you two are dressed that you forgot we were going dancing tonight. At Hawkins Middle. They are recreating Snowball '84 for the reunion."

"Did you write that?" Max asked Mike.

"Uh, no. This is all new to me. I wrote that we were all married, but I didn't flesh out a lot of details."

Max looked hopeful, "Don't ask Wheeler, but I think I fell in love with Lucas."

"Of course you did, silly." El said to them.

Max went to the door and opened it. When she saw Lucas she threw herself at him. Planting kisses all over his face.

Mike wiped the back of his hand over his eyes.

"You ok?" El said quietly to him.

"I'm just really happy right now. Even if it doesn't last, this is the best thing that ever happened to me."

"It's going to last Mike. We made promises to each other. Forever type promises."

This time Mike didn't wipe his tears.

"Look at me," El looked into his face, "you won't lose me Mike. Our hearts belong to each other. I'm not sure even the others know how much we love each other."

Mike kissed El.

Max whispered to the rest just inside the door. "We wait until their done."

Lucas looked at Max.

"We all know this Max. We wait. We're used to it."

"His heart loves hers."


End file.
